Fronton Street Should Have Never Been Renamed
By Diego Garcia III | editor of The Brownsville Beacon
The Heart of Downtown — Jefferson, Adams, Washington, Elizabeth, St. Francis, St. Charles...Fronton. That's how it's been since I came screaming into this world 42 years ago. Today, Fronton from Palm Boulevard to Sam Perl (12th Street) has been renamed for a wealthy family with deep political and historical connections in Brownsville. For the sake of this article, there really is no reason to name the family or what the street was renamed. The conversation of the Brownsville elite and how they pull the strings of Brownsville's government can be addressed another time.
The city, whether through ignorance, incompetence, or apathy, decided to rename historic East Fronton Street without pausing to consider the consequences of their actions. They've done it in the past. Their knee-jerk, quick-draw actions renamed a section of Coffee Port without knowing Coffee Port was actually named after a member of the Coffee family. That was a boondoggle, and so is the mess with Fronton Street.
There is a Facebook page named "E Fronton Street" that chronicles the city's gross incompetence and mismanagement of the whole situation. Articles on that page tell the story of how several people have been denied their First Amendment rights to address the city commission in direct violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act. They tell the story of how city commissioners silenced these people and voted to change the name of the street.
Fronton Street is synonymous with Brownsville history. Fronton Street is the only street with a Spanish name honoring the city's Mexican, Mexican-American, and Latino culture and heritage. The street was also one of the main thoroughfares to one of Brownsville's original African-American communities.
What was the argument for renaming the street after this local family? The family owns a large warehouse on Fronton Street.
With all the clout and influence they wield, I could imagine they could always have another street name that doesn't mean as much to Brownsville history named after them. There really is no good reason to be renaming Fronton Street. They renamed East 12th Street after Sam Perl, there really isn't a reason why they couldn't rename one of the other numbered streets after the family.
We always teach people to think before they speak. We always teach people to do research before they make a big decision. City leaders dropped the ball — city engineers and the public works department should have done their homework before making the decision they made.
To date, the only commissioner who wasn't too keen on the name change and voted it down was Commissioner Ben Neece. All the other commissioners, along with our mayor, appear to have no problem with letting the name change stand. It is disappointing, considering the mayor is a member of the Brownsville Historical Society. He definitely could have said something considering he is such an advocate of restoring and refurbishing Downtown Brownsville.
Residents who feel strongly about the renaming can go to city hall tomorrow to voice their displeasure with the failure of the city commission to change the name of the street back to East Fronton Street. If you are interested in attending the meeting, it will be held tomorrow, November 5, at 5PM. If you need any additional information, I would strongly suggest following the E Fronton Facebook page. You can also contact Carlos Lastra of the Engineering and Public Works Department at 956-541-1012. Please go and make your voices heard. Show the elite the citizens of Brownsville are a force to be heard and a force to be dealt with.
Let's take back East Fronton Street.
The Heart of Downtown — Jefferson, Adams, Washington, Elizabeth, St. Francis, St. Charles...Fronton. That's how it's been since I came screaming into this world 42 years ago. Today, Fronton from Palm Boulevard to Sam Perl (12th Street) has been renamed for a wealthy family with deep political and historical connections in Brownsville. For the sake of this article, there really is no reason to name the family or what the street was renamed. The conversation of the Brownsville elite and how they pull the strings of Brownsville's government can be addressed another time.
The city, whether through ignorance, incompetence, or apathy, decided to rename historic East Fronton Street without pausing to consider the consequences of their actions. They've done it in the past. Their knee-jerk, quick-draw actions renamed a section of Coffee Port without knowing Coffee Port was actually named after a member of the Coffee family. That was a boondoggle, and so is the mess with Fronton Street.
There is a Facebook page named "E Fronton Street" that chronicles the city's gross incompetence and mismanagement of the whole situation. Articles on that page tell the story of how several people have been denied their First Amendment rights to address the city commission in direct violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act. They tell the story of how city commissioners silenced these people and voted to change the name of the street.
Fronton Street is synonymous with Brownsville history. Fronton Street is the only street with a Spanish name honoring the city's Mexican, Mexican-American, and Latino culture and heritage. The street was also one of the main thoroughfares to one of Brownsville's original African-American communities.
What was the argument for renaming the street after this local family? The family owns a large warehouse on Fronton Street.
With all the clout and influence they wield, I could imagine they could always have another street name that doesn't mean as much to Brownsville history named after them. There really is no good reason to be renaming Fronton Street. They renamed East 12th Street after Sam Perl, there really isn't a reason why they couldn't rename one of the other numbered streets after the family.
We always teach people to think before they speak. We always teach people to do research before they make a big decision. City leaders dropped the ball — city engineers and the public works department should have done their homework before making the decision they made.
To date, the only commissioner who wasn't too keen on the name change and voted it down was Commissioner Ben Neece. All the other commissioners, along with our mayor, appear to have no problem with letting the name change stand. It is disappointing, considering the mayor is a member of the Brownsville Historical Society. He definitely could have said something considering he is such an advocate of restoring and refurbishing Downtown Brownsville.
Residents who feel strongly about the renaming can go to city hall tomorrow to voice their displeasure with the failure of the city commission to change the name of the street back to East Fronton Street. If you are interested in attending the meeting, it will be held tomorrow, November 5, at 5PM. If you need any additional information, I would strongly suggest following the E Fronton Facebook page. You can also contact Carlos Lastra of the Engineering and Public Works Department at 956-541-1012. Please go and make your voices heard. Show the elite the citizens of Brownsville are a force to be heard and a force to be dealt with.
Let's take back East Fronton Street.
Comments
Post a Comment